Diyar-e Dil ~ Episode 11 Review

Before I begin can someone please tell me where’s the fire and how bad is it??

Going by Behroze’s aaj nahin tau kabhi nahin attitude it sure did seem like all hell was ready to break loose and bas sab kuch jal kar raakh ho jaana hai …. abhi bas abhi!! Why?? Why did Wali and Fara’s rishta need to be finalized aaj aur isi waqt? I felt so sorry for Agha jan today; hardly had he returned home ke beta ji got this bee in his bonnet about the rishta… and not like doing baap ka emotional atyachar was enough. No. Newly bewa-ed bhabhi and bechara sharif sa Wali both were dragged willy-nilly into this rush to reunite the family. Easily forgotten in his rush, to pukka Fara’s rishta with Wali, was the minor fact that he had a zinda salamat wife of 20+ years, who had every right to expect to be consulted about her daughter’s future.

Magarnahin. Behroze was determined to fix things – as he deemed right. No matter what Agha jan said, or Arjumand said, or the extent to which he went to deliberately keep Ruhi in the dark. All held no meaning in front of Behroze’s blinkers on approach to ensuring Suhaib’s rooh ki khushi. Arrey bhai sahab, if you’re now feeling guilty, tau go ahead repent – who’s stopping you? Magar nahin. Forget about the concept of free-will, forget about his daughter’s right to choose, her dreams, desires, ambitions – that all apparently existed just for him. Ab its only about Behroze’s understanding of how the dearly departed bhai’s rooh will get sukoon in jannat. Bhai jan, last time I checked Quran khwanis work just as well. Try them! No need to play with others’ lives for this purpose!

Though a better episode, if one were to measure it in terms of progression and tears shed, this was a weird one in how it gave us a whole new Behroze. Seems like Ruhi had it right all along. There is indeed something in the hawa paani of the haveli that turns otherwise rational men into neanderthals. How the heck could Behroze inform and assure his father that he and his family would pick up and move from Lahore to the khandani haveli? Just like that? Bhai jan pehle biwi se tau pooch lein! Yes, Mr Behroze, Arjumand nailed it when she said you needed a psychiatrist!

Arjumand deserves a huge round of applause for saying just what needed to be said to apne B=Behroze=blackmailer bhai jan. How dare he bring up the long forgotten mangni and apologize for it now! Seriously?!? I would’ve loved it had Arjumand held her ground, taken a day or two to think about this proposal and made her brother-in-law stew a bit, but alas! She was no match for Behroze. One wasta of Suhaib ki khatir, one mention of his rooh and some talk of his sukoon and she melted. Though disappointed that she consented so easily, I have to applaud her for taking that opportunity to say her piece and not give him Behroze the satisfaction of seeing how much hurt he had caused her.

Behroze might’ve gotten away with his harkats for now, but I am really hoping Ruhi gives it to him good when she finds out his plans. I am having a seriously hard time buying into a story line where a character suddenly flipflops and goes into a 19th c mindset. And we’re supposed to herald him as the good guy? I would have agreed with him being a good guy had he conveyed Agha jan’s apology to Ruhi, invited her to stay at the haveli, eased into the rishta convo, and most importantly asked his daughter’s consent before asking everybody else in the khandan. Instead we are being presented with a scenario tailor-made to portray Ruhi in a bad light and give rise to even more misunderstandings and misconceptions on her part. Yes, Ruhi says inappropriate things and comes off as crass at times, but seriously, as a whole her character is perhaps the only other one that makes any sense to me. The first one being Wali.

When we had first joked about Wali-Man being the savior etc, I had no clue that his character would literally become the only reason I would watch this serial. And no it has nothing to do with the Wali-Fara romance. The reason I find Wali interesting is ’cause this character is probably the only one with a well-defined arc, one that is shaping up ever so subtly. I am enjoying Osman’s underplayed take on this quiet young man forced to shoulder a much older man’s burden.

Wali was always his grandfather’s ladla pota and Zarminey’s beloved lala, but with his father’s passing away he’s had to step into his father’s shoes and become a beta to his grandfather, an emotional support system to his grieving mother, a baap to hisbaby sister, bhai to his baray baba, and now even a shohar to an unknown girl, all overnight. They are all very subtly done, but Osman’s expressions and body language are bang on and he is nailing it as W-Man. Loved the Wali -Zarminey moments (did she ever get her mare?) and the time when Wali consciously takes a minute to appear upbeat before greeting his mother with a smile on his face, the slight raising of his eyebrows when Behroze brings up the rishta, and then his quiet reflection at the window – all beautifully essayed and providing a much needed respite from Mr. B’s shenanigans.

Alongwith Sanam and Osman, Mariyam Nafees was very good as Zarminey. Hareem was good in her confrontation scene with Mikaal, baqi I really wish the powers that be had gone easy with the waterworks. Despite all my grievances with Mr B, and I do have a ton of them today, to give him his due Mikaal is doing well here. Abid Ali was fabulous as the repentant Agha jan. Now his is a character whose turnaround makes sense. As for all that happened today, I can only blame Agha jan’s ill health for him not being firmer with Behroze and not opposing his harebrained scheme where shadi=super glue that keeps families together.

What we see here, this emotional stuff, is a hallmark of Farhat Ishtiaq’s writing and one of the many reasons why her stories are so popular with the audience. More importantly, whether one agrees with the twists or not, they all make sense within the narrative and are intrinsic to the story. In sharp contrast what we are getting here are twists that don’t seem natural to the story unfolding on our screens, hence this feeling of patchiness. There are problems with the visual narrative as well. The longer scenes appear randomly cut up with other shorter scenes sandwiched in between, spoiling the overall impact. We ended last week with Laila telling off Behroze, but today she seemed to have disappeared altogether. Also, randomly edited out was Behroze’s pronouncement that he too might be running out of time – anybody hazard a guess why?

All in all this one is still a very bumpy ride for me – what about you all?

My bestie is right, he is nothing short of Bewakoof Behroze. By the end of the episode, all I could do was laugh at the way he handled things. He went to everyone from Agha Jaan to the dar-o-deewar of the haveli to get them ready for the nikaah and he so CONVENIENTLY forgot that nikaah happens with the consent of both groom AND the bride. Was Farah even told about his father’s plan? Na jee. What does a girl’s consent matter anyway? A barely 18 year old girl who has ambitions to do a lot more in her life than get married and find peace in ghar ghrahasti. Acha chalo, mitti pao. Wo tou ladki hai, bachi hai, nadaan hai…usse apne bhale bure ka kya pata? Behroze was adamant to fulfill his dead brother’s wish, to do something that would make him happy after his death because jazbaat and shit. Yeah…noble reasons. Caring for the dead and completely forgetting the living. Here is what Suhaib actually wished for:

I just…can’t with Behroze’s utter stupidity in this episode. Suhaib never asked ke nahin, shaadi tou HONI hi hai. Never once did he say that. He knew what it was like to be forced into marriages, that is why he specifically said about the understanding and consent part. But Behroze…*sigh* he listens what he wants to listens..

*mumbles grumbles*

I do hope Ruhi gives him some proper hell next week. This man needs it. Yaani, hadd hoti hai! Tch..he never had the maturity to deal with situations properly.

Other than that, I quite liked the episode. Much better than the slump of last week. Really liked the way Agha Jaan and Behroze’s scene was written. It took him 20 years and a death to make AJ realize that his ego and zidd were just hollow concepts because they could never make anyone happy. I am glad how he divided the blame between both of them because that’s how it was. He even asked Behroze to not make the same mistakes as him. Lessons are learned at such heavy prices man…

Arjumand is my rockstar! Haha, I practically whooped when she suggested Behroze to go consult a psychiatrist. Really liked her treatment of Behroze. He is her dead husband’s brother and nothing else. Agree with you, how could be even think of apologizing for something he did all those years ago? Blackmailer Behroze cornered her with Suhaib’s last wish thing and I can’t blame her for giving in easily. Even if she had taken some days to give her answer, it would’ve always been a yes because that’s just how it is. She can do anything for Suhaib, that’s her love for him. Ab sahi hai ya galat, that’s another debate but aisa hi hai.

I practically draw hearts all over Wali-Zarminey scenes. Sibling scenes be the best! And that by the pond bit was soooooooo beautifully acted. Obi just nails all these expressions and Mariyam tou has been impressing me since day1. Z’s concern for her Lala that he agreed to a marriage with a total stranger was so heartwarming. Wali taking her by the hand and calmly explaining his reasons…*sniff sniff* now I miss my Islamabad and China gaye hue brothers 😦

Thank goodness for Tajamul having enough sense to not give in to Ruhi’s tantrums and basically ordering her to go to haveli. And Bhabhi tou was only adding fuel to the father. It kind of sucked to see Farah turning to Moeez to handle her own mother. Wahan Baba hai who forgets to ask his daughter while fixing his marriage, yahan Mama hai who couldn’t care less about her dazed and confused daughter’s concerned state. Sucks to be you baby 😦 Haha, how adorable was the last shot when Farah and Ruhi enter the haveli. Farah’s completely panicked state as she looks all around and drinks in the shaya-shaan haveli while clutching Ruhi’s arm like a scared child. I just want to wrap her in bubble wrap and protect her from everything!

Okay, I personally have no complains with anyone when it comes to the acting department. Everyone delivers wonderfully. I do, however, find Wali’s haath jod ke chalna a tad too distracting. When I see him walking with his hands joined together…I just have these flashes of historical Korean dramas which depict Joseon Dynasty. Cuz their all the servants walk around like this, completely like Wali does. Sometimes I have a feeling that Wali might just start bowing and cry, “Your Majestyyyy! Have meerrcccyyy!!” As long as the camera pans on his face, everything is perfect and the world is a bright place. The scene you mentioned where he sees Arjumand in the morning and there’s this instant heartbreaking grief on his face before he controls himself…that was brilliant! It made me want to hug smother him in a hug MY BABBBYYY!!! But those hands…those tied HANDS like a criminal being taken to jail. I can not deal with those. Even Mumma was like, “Why does he walk like that?” I wanna do bit of a science and glue two magnets of the same polarity on both of his palms so that the hands will never get together 😐

Haan I too am glad that Tajammul is the sensible one, and the bhabhi … well I get that she is the typical bhabhi, but still I dont like the way they’ve turned all these characters into complete caricatures.

Re: Ruhi aisi hi thi and aisi hi rahegi: I agree this is how she was in the original, and I took it at face value there b/c we did not have all this background info … but now that we do, as I was telling @Rehmat below, it would have been nicer had they given her some nuance. Yahan tau she is literally walking around with a sign that says: Hate me I’m the wicked witch of the west.

Re: Wali: I am hoping that this farmanbardar look is to distinguish him as a young guy from the adult he will become later, when he is no longer so hesitant and unsure of himself and everything else around him.

Re: Maya and the last shot entering the haveli: LIKe @VZ I was soo distracted by those yellow pants ke kuch aur dikha hi nahin! I don’t know who suggested that she wear those, but that style is so very unflattering on her! And the way she was clinging to her mother actually made her look like a 12/13 yr old … she’s 18, in college, and not normally a shy hesitant kind of a girl (look at the way she told off her cousin or the way she talks to her friends or her interactions with her father ) so while it was visually interesting, I felt all that clinginess did not gel with her character… But that said, as a hook it was interesting, and left me waiting to see how she would respond to her father’s “suggestion”

Behroze Behroze Behroze ….. WTH are you doing?!?
SZ you are so right!!! Loved your intro, I had many words for his 360 degree turn Hun character, I’m not gonna say them here lol
Yeh kya tha?!,
I actually have more respect for Afhajann , he was how he was and he did things due to the culture he was brought up in! And now Aghajan actually learnt from that and changed But Behroze?!? Everything he stood for gone down the drain, I mean it doesn’t make sense!!!
Supposedly someone loves his wife picks her fights against being forcedc now doesnt deen bothering doing mashwara with them!!!
I’m lost for words can’t talk about any other scenes right jow, and what’s woth the brothers seemingly knowing they are about to die soon what did they get a sign ?!? Both saying they don’t have much time left, Kind of creepy if you ask me lol
Please don’t pass this early dying and knowing about it trait to wali and Farah they actually seem normal compared to these over emotional dads, we don’t want to see them die so soon lol
Ok I’m done venting will be back!

@SK: Exactly!!! Your vent is almost exactly what I felt as I was watching it .. with every passing scene I was like no, no, no .. but Behroze just kept on going from one extreme to another…I literally had to pause like 7-8 times during the ep because I just couldnt take it … the way this is going it wont be long before I start writing my not-reviews – the kind I did for Ashk .. remember how much fun those were?!

SZ, enjoyed your review very much! You are spot on about the issues that bother me, especially Wali – he is the only person who gives me hope for the remaining 20+ episodes and I look forward to seeing many more shades to his character. I am sure we will get to see a huge growth curve in Wali and I am delighted that OKB has managed to get into the skin of the character, because frankly, he is the one tempting me back to watch this week after week.

Last week I was flying the flag for Wali and this week he continued to impress. Agree with all your points about Wali and OKB’s portrayal – you’ve mentioned his body language – that scene where he brings Faara and Roohi into the haveli, his walk was so Wali! OKB and Haseeb have done an excellent job here and OKB’s hard work is paying off.

Loved his scenes with Maryam Nafees, who gives a fantastic performance as Zarminey – loving how she shows her spunk (questioning the rishta), her vulnerability (at her baba’s loss) and the quiet reassurances Wali gives her, wah! Zarminey, by the way, seems to have inherited her mum’s genes in asking the right questions at the right time 🙂

Faara, I am still on the fence – but her wardrobe?! I understand Faara is a chirpy teenager, but why the canary yellow trousers on her visit to the haveli?! Judging by the promos, she has more sombre colours later on…

I can’t help feeling that the last 3 episodes could’ve been easily made more crisp, I am feeling fatigued already – just me?

@VZ: First off, hope you’re done grading – I so dont envy you this very boring job, and then 100 scripts!! 😱 I hope these were MCQs and not three page essays that you had to grade 😳

Re: the fatigue: yes, I’m with you… dont know how long i can keep up with this emotional atyachar.. dekhtey hain ..

I am so with you on those ugh pants … what was that?!? I had to go back and watch that last scene after I read @mais’ comment. The first time I around I was too busy tryin to wrap my head around those!

Nice point abt Zarminey taking after her mother – so true! I loved that she and to some extent her mom were the only ones who questioned this idiotic step… ab I cant wait to see Ruhi give it good to Behroze …

And on this .. have you seen this new Ufone ad? I watched it and could only think that this was exactly how I want Ruhi to treat B after hearing his brilliant idea!

Thanks for asking about the marking – 75 done, 25 or so to go, phew! These are not MCQs, I teach financial economics and there are some essay questions and some numericals. Getting there…

I haven’t seen the ad you mentioned, for some reason it won’t play and says “video unavailable”. I’ll try googling it.

What can I say about the play – at the moment it is taking all of WaliMan’s charm and the promise shown in some of the promos to keep me watching. I don’t know whose vision this is – all this rona-dhona, no nuances in the characters…disappointing, – this is the only play I am watching at the mo, unless we get a move on, I am losing my patience here. But clearly we are in the minority – while I am happy for the hardworking cast and crew to get all the praise and recognition they deserve, I can’t help feeling that this play could’ve been so much better…frustrating because the good moments get lost in the whole melodrama…

😂😂😂
Now thats the kinda ruhi i wanna see 🙅 – a feisty one – what we r getting is this 👿 the she devil..
Btw found some more ded characters :
👼 + 🏇 Wali with his halo and horsepower
😇 + 😭 sohaib with his halo and aansoo
👨 young behroze with the mostache (everytime i look at this dunno why but this Reminds me of behroze) – old behroze 💘 (playing cupid)
👵😶 Arju with no voice..

Now Now you guys are being too harsh on poor Behroze. Since the start of this drama and even before that, a few eons ago, we have been shipping for Wali-Fara, and if not for Behroze and his fickle shifting of priorities, his guilt driven conscience and his emotional quotient being low, we would never have had Wali and Fara in the future. Not a single other character is even remotely interested in having them together, not even the concerned persons themselves. Fara is totally unaware and in perpetual state of tension and fear under her mother’s waspish tongue and looks. Wali, I guess is, ‘rishta hua to achha, nahin hua toh aur achha state. Agha Jaan has learnt his lessons the hard way and no ways is he imposing this re-union. Arjumand would back off at the slightest knowledge that Suhaib’s wish was qualified with ‘if and but’ condition. Ruhi wouldn’t even agree to the rishta over her dead body and till the day of Qayamat and Suhaib who had the sense to put forward his wish, conditioned to the razaamandi of the people for whom it would be a life altering decision. So all credit to Behroze who is being foolish, highhanded, adamant and guilt driven, but is going to be responsible for many a happy hearts. 😉

Did anyone else feel it was a bit strange that Wali was not shown a single photo of Faara? In his place, I’d be googling “Faara Behroze Khan” (with all possible spelling options), looking her up on facebook etc…

See Ruhi was right. Kitne jhaahil log hai…Internet bhi nahin hai…LOL. But all jokes apart, IMO Wali must hv already seen Fara’s pic as Suhaib had already talked to Wali abt a prospective match nd he also said that she was ‘badi pyaari ‘. So I m sure he showed him her pic too.

@NKhan: LOL they do have internet, remember Zarminey and her apple pie recipe that she had downloaded from the ‘net 🙂 I think there was a pic of Fara floating around in the haveli … maybe AJ had it, when Suhaib had reminded him he had two potis… not exactly sure..

But in any case, I dont think bechara Wali was in any frame of mind to think about Fara the living breathing indiv,,, at this point the way she was discussed it was as if Behroze’s daughter was an inanimate object, some thing B sahab owned and was in a position to hand off to anyone who he deemed fit …aargh!! Im getting angry again!! 😡

Haina!! I have no clue why MD and Haseeb and Farhat, otherwise very sane and sensible people, thought they would take such an OTT melodramatic approach to story telling. But then again, perhaps what do we know .. I am very surprised at all the tareef that has been doled out to this project so far.

LOL! Haan Wali is beeba bacha to the Tee so far. Going by the promos and his later jeans and tees avatar it does seem like that he will eventually grow into a man in his own right, rather than being a lakeer ka fakeer that he is right now. lets see when that happens 🙂

It’s so easy for Roohi to come across as the villain but Behroze’s behaviour and actions have confirmed that her paranoia was justified. We talked about the distance between Roohi and Behroze’s as a married couple compared to Suhaib and Arjumand. But perhaps Roohi knows her husband well and the bond he has with the haveli.

I totally get her insecurity. Remember how overcome she was when she saw the haveli for the first time. Behroze’s left all that for her……she, not Behroze’s, has to ask herself everyday ‘was she worth it’ the haveli is like having a mega glamorous and beautiful sothan. Your husband promises not to visit this sothan but one day he has to go and stays there for days without calling and no contact. Off course you are going to feel insecure and act irrational.

Behroze’s should have at least have the decency to go to Lahore and bring his wife and daughter to the haveli. He can’t even bother to go to the airport, he sends Wali.

@SZ. By the way thank you a few weeks ago for recommending Talkiyaan and Perchaan dramas. I have actually watched the first few episodes of Talkiyaan and was really impressed. I intend to complete this drama later in the year as I think it’s something you have to be in the mood for. We got Hum Europe here in London about 10 months ago and after a break of 15 years we have only just started to give Pakistani dramas another go. We watched Zindagi Gulzar Hai, Humsafar and then Auun Zara online. I am afraid after this we were not impressed with much of what was on Hum (do the words Ahista Ahista mean anything to people). Sadqay Tumari had potential but……We only gave Dayar-e-Dil a go because of the cast and it has despite all the issues we have all complained about been a relatively good drama to watch so far. And we now have Geo TV free as well. I am sorry if this sounds harsh but if tomorrow here in London we had to pay a subscription charge for these TV channels, like some of the Indian channels, I wouldn’t bother.

Talkhiyaan I hv watched nd is one of my favs nd I keep watching it on an off. And like you, I too on recommendation from @SZ nd the others here, waiting to watch Pehchaan. have downloaded Pehchaan and am waiting for my kids’ school to reopen to watch in peace. 🙂

@NKhan: I hear you and completely agree with you. There was a time when I used to get DVDs from Pk for every drama that came out, and even though I knew not every drama could be brill, I knew at the very least if would a good one time watch.And thats how I got into bloogiong as well, when I started looking online for drama serial reviews to see which ones were good, so that I made sure that I watched them …

Ab ffwd four five years later, and even though we have yt, instant streaming, so many review sites, I tell you I can barely make myself sit through an entire episode, forget abt the whole serial! The good serials in the past three years can be counted on one hand and you will still have fingers left over!

These days, to be very honest, I have a blog so I keep track of what else is out there, but if I did not have the blog I dont think I’d watch whatever little I do watch. Also had it not be for you all I dont think I wouldve continued .. so a big huge thank you to you all..

Ab lets see how long we continue to enjoy this one as a group …

Re: Talkhiyan and Pehchan: yes for Talkhiyan you have to be in that frame of mind, where you can concentrate and focus on every little detail, because here unlike other serials, ever object in the scene has meaning, every line has a purpose and the script, acting, directing, cinematography everything is in a class by itself. Similarly for Pehchan. I can tell you after Talkhiyan and Pehchan ended it was as if they had left a void in my life ,,,, I was so used to thinking abt every ep, our discussions here had so much depth, that I really missed all that … even SeZ, I dont know if you;ve seen that .. but that too was like an experience that leaves you shaken…

OK, now Im rambling so its best to snip this abhi aur isi waqt ala Behroze! 😉

Arrange an instant nikkah* for your daughter without even the bride or her mother getting to know about it – call them to the haveli and watch the look of surprise/shock/horror (delete as applicable) on their faces… watch the apple of your eye get married while our local band plays the superhit song “Completely and utterly illogical”…

*Discretion is our watch-word and we pride ourselves on our impeccable emotional blackmailing service (available at no extra cost).

Enjoy a sip of lemon green tea while you relax by the pool and your family decides what to do with you…

Free unexpected hugs from the resident haveli ghost…

Go apple-picking in the haveli’s orchards and enjoy tea and apple cake while you watch WaliMan solve his next challenge without getting a single strand of hair out of place…

Explore the haveli grounds with a guided tour on horseback (white mare available on special request)…

Don’t forget to visit the character flip-flop corner and watch usually sane and practical people utter completely out-of-character dialogues!

Our exclusive emotional atyachaar package: Your visit will be incomplete without a half-day course in all matters of the heart – learn to cry your heart out from our experts (optional extra: delivering cheezy dialogues, chest-beating and fainting).

Hankies will be provided, but those of an extremely emotional disposition are requested to bring their own towels.

Other packages available: Super-quick engagement break-ups, week-end dalliances that leave a lifetime of memories and more.

Deluxe and Honeymoon packages include flights and private transfers from the airport – by Wali-man himself!! and a welcome (comittee/hugs) upon arrival.
Standard package : transfers by car / van / bus. Please make your own way to the reception/living room.

Special Ilham services are available especially if your time is near. We recommend bringing up your entire khandan, and highly recommend to seal the deal on any impending/prospective rishtas. Special packages are available. Please contact Behroze directly for further assistance.

Zabardasti ke hugs and sandwiches available at all hours.

Please note : (small print)
The haveli is a place to loose urself and to cut off from the rest of the world.
There is no internet connection available in the haveli.
All social activities are banned at the premesis. There is no room for real friends or social media. (families only)
You must be straight A student or over to be eligible to enter the haveli.
Nafarmanbardari is strictly not allowed. We reserve the right to turn away/kick out any nafarmanbardar at anytime.
If you’re a female, please also leave your voice outside. Haveli has no place for that. It can’t be heard anyway….
We will not be held responsible for aging and questionable growth issues if you decide to stay over for long periods.
The haveli reserves the ultimate right to refuse accommodation or services or remove you and members of your party from the Hotel at any time without prior notice.

Haveli has the right to refuse entry/banish you/ insult you/ lalkaro your ghairat about never ever thinking of entering it again! Also you can only survive if you are a farmanbardar ‘ Beeba bacha’ so be ready to wear starched shalwar kameez and waistcoats, and walk in a perculiar ‘kalaf zada’ way…always have your hands together behind your back with the torso bent in farmanbardari and say’ baray baba’ in every sentence.

Rehmat, Asma, Afia, FA – thanks a lot 🙂 I have around 100 scripts to mark and at this moment, I am trying my best to do everything else but get down to marking them 😦

FA – so loved your additions – just so good :-D! The small print was spot on (great idea) and I love the idea of WaliMan making airport pick-ups! It’s so true about the no-friends point – which is quite strange!

Atty, I too like his videos so much, I wish he kept up with it and made more. I definitely hope he makes one on DeD, it will be fun to watch his take on all these zabardasti kay hugs!

And yes, I liked Aunn Zara too, it’s such a nice watch. Even now I keep watching some of the episodes to just have a laugh and the episode where Aunn is singing all these songs one after the other is a favourite one! I like how he sings “tujhay banaaya gaya hai MERAY liyay”, the way he was stressing on that “meray” bit was so well done 🙂

@VZ: Last week it was @mais with her gifs and this week its you … so in awe of you guys and your talent! 👏👍🏆

I think between all of us here we can easily come up with a pretty good 20 + ep serial – with all the requisite masala but never stooping to OTT ness – the kind that can put all these big productions to shame!!

@Sheema: Spot on – 100% agree with you kum kharch bala nasheen type comment. And no, its not just PK, many others, world over, seem to be enjoying this aansoo-on bhari dastaan.

Given how various fora are describing DeD as a masterpiece/flawless/fabulous and what not I am really afraid that in six months all our dramas are going to look and sound like bad ’80’s Lollywood films.

Absolutely loved your review..specially what you wrote about OKB’s Wali.. Indeed he has nailed Wali.. By each passing episode we can see different layers of Wali.. His scenes with Zarmeeney were beautiful specially the second one.. Both Obi and Maryam Nafees were bang on.. I am so glad that she is playing Zarmeeney.. A beautiful character inside n out i must say.. Scene with Arjumand was also beautifully done.. All in all a happy viewer and (reader) when we talk about Wali..

But… Whats going on with still mourning of Suhaib.. Tauba he when i saw arjumand and AJ crying .. I was like no way maan.. Literally sabr ko azmaarahe the.. Why to show such detail k banda bezaar hie hojaye… Behroze rushing on Wali-Faara nikah.. I knew this was coming but the way they have shown this was not upto my expectations.. I always imagined those scenes more subtle and more kinda intense.. but yahan kuch ajeeb sa tha.. Talking to Arjumand, then Wali.. These things were not in novel.. I cant hate Behroze .. He did wrong totally wrong in making that decision .. Not caring a heck about your wife and daughter, not discussing or even telling them before hand.. But thats how we are shown his nature or characteristics of his personality..

Arjumand was spot on with B till he mentioned Suhaib n his akhir khuawish.. Bus.. Uske baad kya B, kya Roohi aur kaun Faara.. I was wondering why they had to make her recall her rejection and scene where B introduces Roohi.. She shouldnt be hating Roohi.. Instead Behroze is the one who is guilty here..

I am liking SS’s Roohi but maan why they have to give her such cruel dialogues.. For heaven sake let us decide if she is meanest person on earth or not.. Atleast novel me it was some decent dialogues for her..

also i have to mention that till now if i have to choose from book and drama.. I would say Book was more better because we were just told about things, we did not see them happen like Behroze talking to AJ, Arjumand or Wali regarding rishta.. Which made more sense in understanding the characters and their thought process.. Mostly from faara, AJ or Wali’s point of view

Rehmat, thanks for the book input. And I agree with you about Behroze’s character – like we discussed in last week’s episode, he is zero when it comes to handling relationships with tact and taking everyone along. I think Roohi’s anger and outburst are completely justified. But I too wish they gave her more dignified dialogues, because she does have a point in her anger! Agha Jaan was always an unresolved issue for Behroze and Roohi and this latest activity of Behroze is completely bringing out all of Roohi’s fears/insecurities.

Re: book vs the drama, I think the reason we are finding it a bumpy ride as SZ says is because they have stretched this whole Sohaib dying and Behroze feeling guilty bit – stretched so much that the impact has become diluted. As you say, it is not appearing intense. This is really the most important part of the story so far, because it impacts the lead characters directly. But it lacks that punch.

Let’s just hope that when the time comes, they keep the Wali-Faara parts intense and punchy. And I hope we get some better dialogues yaar – I mean, when Sohaib was saying “kabhi kabhi meray dil mein khayal aata hai” I just remembered Aunn singing that to Zara. I hope Wali-Faara bring some intensity…

@Rehmat: Agree with you .. not just in terms of the non-linear structure but that all this info abt the various characters was not there .. and if they, the powers that be, had decided to give us al lthis info then they should have nuanced the characters accordingly. The way things stand now, it is very hard to digest so much whats happening.

Spot on! OKB’s Wali appears to be the only sane character – apart from Zarmeenay – among the crazy haveli residents and I loved their scene together. Understated, subtle, natural.

Really, there is such overstatement of all sentiments in the serial that I can’t take it for more than a minute and just want to somehow be able to push the character(s) out of the screen. I especially disliked Arjumand’s oration – I mean, every time she talks about Suhaib she just has to exaggerate. “Main tooti tou mujhe sambhala”, “meri dhaal bana”, UHU bana etc etc… – for God’s sake, woman, we get it. One mention of his name, and bang! off explodes the emotional bomb. Arey bhai, what problem do you have keeping some of him to yourself? It is as if she needs to say things out loud in order to believe them herself. Which is not true, I know, but she tries so hard and it comes off like that to me.

Behroze k tou kya kehne. Sab aap ne keh dia, bilkul theek theek. He’s right crazy – much more like his Agha Jaan than previously realized by anyone – and how ironic is it that this facet of his personality has become so glaringly obvious just when AJ mended his less-than-fair ways.

And if the next episode has no Wali-Faara scenes – and good ones, at that – I am going to devise a way to reach through my TV screen, grab onto Behroze’s neck and wring it for all its worth. I’ve been forced to entertain thoughts of murdering the man responsible for the entire fiasco, because of which we were made to wait so many episodes for the present to just arrive. Look what they’ve done

Okay, so back to regularly scheduled programming and to continue with responses 🙂

@Nashra: Hello ji! LOL! You sound just about as fed up as I am.. I too have entertained thoughts of murder and mayhem and thought abt watching this with a tokri filled with gande tamatar… but what keeps me going in these crazy convos we have here – so much more fun than what we are watching unfold on our screens!

Re: Arjumand: You know its interesting you bring up her long winded monologues, because when she’s saying all these lines she is as much a bechari, as any other, someone who couldn’t have survived on her own without a man.. but at the same time, watch some of her other scenes and she comes off as a very strong minded woman (for instance the way she stood up to her parents against her shadi to Suhaib, the way she kept him at an arms length (till that miraculous change of heart), the way she refused to even entertain the thought of a possible mangni b/w Wali and fara when Suhaib suggested it, and finally the way she ripped into Behroze (she deserves a standing ovation for the psych line!), all those instances do not gell with those bechargi wali lines …

At times like these it seems as if the script was written in parts by various ppl, each with their own conception about this character..and its not just Arju We see this inconsistency in the overall narrative, the way characters do things, the way situations happen, its as if things are being randomly thrown into the pot.. its like saying ok, Wand Fara have to get nikkahofied, ok how do we do this in one ep .. and bam, Behroze goes nutso …. similarly with Ruhi… why turn her into such a blacker than black character?

@SZ brilliant review for a rather insane ep! It was much better in terms of pace than last two eps and I was surprized to see the reunion in haveli already.. but at what cost?? It almost felt like achanak kachwa rote sote utha aur bhag laga di.. Aisi bhag ke behroze didnt even try to bother easing his wife and daughter into this new situation and went on a mad minesweeping mission.. no wonder last week he said waqt kam hai!
Last week I thought they were making Ruhi turn into a mad witch, but this week I think they justified all her insecurities. Now I feel she knew Behroze too well! The way he transformed from a level headed, quite liberal, fairly rational, man to an emotionally charged bull/dinosaur in a china shop, anyone would think he was brainwashed or had a personality transplant.. I totally get Ruhi’s insecurities…
@mais made a good point abt Sohaib’s ‘subject to razamandi’ clause.. behroze ne tou sohaib ko bhi peeche chor diya! but what got to me that Sohaib mian had discussed his akhri khawahish with everyone but conveniently forgot to mention it to his wife…
It was good to see Arju show some spunk again.. I would have liked to have seen her take her sweet time and mull over a bit.. but chalo khair.. @SZ i agree with not giving B the satisfaction.. I also liked her quiet me-moment when she’s dreading to face Ruhi. I liked how on the surface she seems to be taking it on the chin, but on the inside she has her reservations and fears.. Even though she had loved Sohaib all these years, she can still feel the pain caused all those years ago. But talking about her pain now almosts sounds like a betrayal/ bewafai to Sohaib. I think it’s these human moments that have Farhat’s hallmark.. why dont we get more of these?…. but anyway It will be interesting to see the two women play their games with very different approach.
This week it went to show the mindset of the haveli – that sadly there is no place for a woman’s voice in the haveli.. Behroze proved it by not consulting his wife and daughter, Sohaib never consulted Arju, and then Wali too following his baba and bare baba’s footsteps… Afterall he is a born-feudal. I was surprized when he said yes on the spot without discussing the proposal with his mom. After seeing his considerate side ,I thought, knowing her past, he would have considered her feelings and opinion.. yes AJ asked Arju eventually, but she didn’t have much choice in the matter by that point. It felt more like a kahanapoori.. How could she not agree to welcoming Ruhi?.. It was like exposing herself to judgement and questioning her loyalty to Sohaib. She is caught between a rock and a hard situation..

OKB’s Wali is def shaping up. I liked his body language and the slight gestures that spoke volumes.. I’ve already registered my only complaint about Wali – I wonder if Faara will fix that issue? lol

My fav scene of the ep is def the Wali Zaminey scene, where she is looking out for her Lala.. Both OKB and MN were fab and totally at ease in that scene.

@SZ Im with u abt the editing. It felt very choppy. There was abrupt ending/cut to some of the scenes and it felt quite haphazard. Hope they fix that asap.. I’d have liked to have seen less rona dhona and more time spent on rationalizing some of the moves.. Baqi Im glad atleast we seem to be moving again..

Re: Wali not consulting Arju, I think Behroze said “mainay, Agha Jaan nay aur Arjumand nay yeh tai kiya hai…” or some such thing when he brought up the rishta with Wali.

Both Faara and Roohi are strong characters and won’t hesitate to speak their miinds, so I hope Faara will introduce the much-needed woman’s voice in the haveli…however, the way they are painting Roohi black, I hope they keep Faara’s outbursts justified and give her a rational persona.

All women in the Haveli are supposed to follow the orders of the men. Even Wali did not consult his mother before saying ‘yes’ to his uncle. What is the jaldi??? oh…. I forgot…the elhaam ‘ waqt kum hay’ so one or two calls to his wife were not possible?
OKB makes this typical ‘ farmanbar Beeba bacha’ face that is very irritating. He has worked on his body language: Kalaf zada walk, shoulders and torso bent forward in farmanbardari… a slight smile and on his lips ‘baray baba- baray baba !! Yaar khuda ka khauf karo… This is really challenging our intelligence! This is taking the obedience expected from children to a whole new level!!

Hey all: Just a head up: Our next interviewee is *insert drum roll* our very own Arjumand aka Hareem Farooq! I will write up the post later today, but wanted to give you all a heads up so that you start thinking up your questions 🙂 🙂

@VZ: bale bhaye bale mubarks.. 100 scripts were not an easy job to do 🙂

Reg: QeT.. Oh well i watched with so much interest infact during those times this drama used to be my favorite.. When i was blindly follower of UA.. Well i still like her but now have that sense where to rationalize and where to say what!!! No way…. Anyways If you ask me now i would say its bit saddest.. Something that partially i agree to and partially no..but you watch and see for yourself how you like it 🙂

QeT – I’ll try a couple of episodes and see how it goes 🙂 I know what you mean about UA’s writing – she always goes for depicting the harsh realities of life and I quite like that, but sometimes I wish she would ummm…how can I put it, loosen up a bit? I remember when I was watching Daam and part of me wanted Junaid and Zara to be together (though I understand why Zara took the decision she did), but with UA, she will never romanticise things. Even when there is romance, it will come with a focus on realistic problems and never the candyfloss kind. But kya karein, sometimes candyfloss feels so good, gives some escapism!

@VZ Yay!!!
Re Qaid-e-Tanhai : I watched it in the early days of my come back to PK dramas , which was was after many many years.. so it was an interesting watch because it was a novelty for me then. I’m not sure what I would say if it was on now. Mind you, I also binge watched it, which ususally makes it easier to tolerate alot of stuff…
I thought the story was interesting because it maintained some element of suspense throughout.. but beware! there is quite alot of saas bahu susral hangama etc too. FQ plays an older guy role, which suited him much better. The story went back and forth in time, which was handled very well. Actually come to think of it, it was similar to Meri Zaat Zarra Benishan in many ways…
Looking back at it now, perhaps it was still much better than alot of rubbish that’s on TV these days.

Thanks FA! Wah, wah, so many of us pottering around the blog at the same time!

Thanks for your comments on QeT – I’ll give it a go and see what happens. I liked MZZB’s younger generation bits (Imran Abbas and Sarwat were great, so was the guilt-ridden portrayal by FQ). Some parts were just too sad (though understandable and a key part of the storyline).

Yaar these days there is just no choice – it’s all kinds of mediocre, run-of-the-mill, mass-produced regressive stuff. DeD, with all its faults, is still one of the better plays on air now…

I think there’s more similarities to older gen 🙂 .. Younger generation has entirely different sort of issues here. When I compared it to MZZB I meant more presentation-wise and overall genre of the story 🙂
There is guilt & sad bits, but in a different kinda way..

@VZ: Sorry, keep forgetting to respond the question you had asked last week re: this @

I dont know how other blogs do it, but for me this has been an organic development as the blog has grown. For me, @ before a handle signifies the person I am addressing, and also the @ in front of a handle in the middle of a sentence signifies that it is not a typo (because handles are of all types and kinds) but that it is somebody that you are referring to within the body of the comment. Also, it makes it easier, for me at least, to skim and know that the question is intended for me so I should respond to it. Earlier I remember many times the commentator would be referring to somebody else and I would be answering, basically stepping in a convo where I did not belong. Conversely at times I did not responded to comments which were meant for me because they were not really addressed to anyone, hence now I have started @-ing ppl so that there is no confusion as to the addressee … you of course can type your responses however it works for you, and since I dont remember any issues with your comments, carry on! 🙂

You know, this play (QeT) is starting to appear unappealing already – saas-bahu, rona-dhona, mazloom aurat… my biggest issue with MZZB was why Saba was so resigned to all that was happening around her/to her – if this play has similar issues, then I’d rather not watch it. I like women who come up against all odds and never give up, so a passive unquestioning heroine is a big turn off.

Had have heard so much abt QeT that in fact that was next on my list after Pehchaan.

@ VZ – I too never like the mazloom aurat types main protagonists, forever resigned to their fate, but I don’t see Saba in MZZB as one. I felt, after all she went through, she became cynical towards people and relationships and hence she distanced herself from everyone, as she realized how shallow things were and she totally stopped having expectations from the people and world at large and hence renounced the world and all that she had once upon a time thought to be of interest to her. She was even detached from her daughter. Her love for Allah was always strong and after what she went through this and her trust in only Him sustained her till the end. So she made her own choices and it may seem that she allowed herself to miss out on life, but that is what she wanted. So I don’t see her as being resigned to her fate, rather she chose her fate.

Radiant – thanks for your thoughts, I really liked how you explained Saba’s take on life. 🙂

I did not mean that Saba was a mazloom aurat, sorry, I don’t think I expressed myself well there. What I meant was, Saba had this passive way of dealing with life – I guess not everyone will be out-spoken and feisty, but being an educated woman, she could have worked and fended for herself much early on in her life – the way she agreed to the second marriage, the way she put up with the nonsense that was continuing to be doled out to her, was disappointing.

Yes, it was her choice, but life is precious and I’d rather not see someone waste away like that – she could have kept that connection with Allah and still managed to make something out of her life. This sort of cutting herself off from the world, in my opinion, did not serve any purpose. Yes, her trust was broken in a very bad way, what happened with her was wrong, but instead of moving into a closed shell, she could have made a more positive impact on society. Even if her zaat was a zarra-e benishaan, there was enough scope there to leave behind a positive message. Her daughter, for starters, could’ve definitely used a more active role model!

Sorry, I did not mean to undermine the story and I get it that what you’ve expressed is really the essence of the story, but I can’t help feeling that we could’ve been shown something more inspiring…

Sure will do :)…in fact having watched some of the recommended and discussed shows here, I do feel deprived of the pleasure of indulging in baal ki khaal nikaalna process that I am now doing with DeD. Hehehe

@Radiant I liked your explanation. @ VZ I didn’t like the saint-hood / mazlooziat route they had taken for Saba in MZZB. What came across on the screen for me was a Naik Parveen who was thrown in the mazloomiat ki chakki – wronged time and time again. But yes, she did have an ego and her spiritual journey which made kept that interesting.
RE QeT: Without giving away much…forget ego, resolution, or passiveness, the lead role in Sawera Nadeem has become a complete door mat in her old age..and that’s my biggest beef about the play.. But what made this an interesting watch was that you see her younger version alongside throughout the play, in a very balanced screen time, who was the complete opposite. She was out-spoken, feisty, level headed; and to some extent a go-getter. It was intriguing.. i wanted to find out how on earth she ended up in that zombie-like state. There were bits that didn’t make much sense and I’d have like to have taken a different route, eg. why didn’t she go for divorce in the end, but i guess then we wouldn’t have a story 🙂

Unlike MZZB here everyone is grey , which is always interesting. There’s guilt all round 🙂 .
It questions long distance relationships, dragging out bitter relationships and their practicality, and the impact on children… so in terms of issues we have a very different set of issues.
Re Pehchan : It’s a must-watch! It discusses mazloom/kamzor aurat vs strong aurat beautifully. Infact I was thinking abt Laila as I was typing abt QeT..

On a separate note : On Hum Europe we are watching QeT rerun and Mol at the same time.. Why cast FQ in a younger hero type role in Mol with all his make up? He looks so much better as the older dad with greying hair in QeT 🙂

@ VZ I get you and again I too prefer the pro-active approach than the passive approach, but the way I see it is, that yes for most of us Saba may appear passive, but for me she doesn’t. I too hate the glorification of victims, especially of domestic violence and the concept of so-called martyrdom that dramas tend to show. But again in Saba’s case, for her getting married again to a much older man of 50 years with 4 kids and being physically abused by him was not worse than the treatment that she received from her own family members. She was stoic about it as, by this time, she had no expectations from people and when it become too much to endure she left him. Also what we may see as a wasted life, was in fact a peaceful and calm life for Saba. If we remove all the trappings and go to the baser level, isn’t that ultimately what we humans strife for or in fact should strife for? A life in which we have peace of mind? I know Saba’s way isn’t the only way to achieve that, but she acheived it in that manner and was satisfied with her life.

Hmmm yes I suppose her daughter could have used a more active role model, but I don’t think she was deprived because her mother wasn’t one. Again here by depriviation I don’t mean materialistic things, but the basic values, education and environment needed to be a well balanced individual. Also in her own way, Saba did plan for a secure future for Sara by sending her to Arfeen. Guess she realized that Haider would be a good husband for her daughter, as she knew the kind of person Haider was, but for once, we have a parent not being a la Behroze/ Baseerat but very sensibly paving a way for her child’s future, in stead of imposing her will, and leaving the rest up to the Almighty.

Also she was initially shown feisty and out-spoken, but I suppose later on she just found everything not worth it.

Ironically Kashaf and Saba are my 2 most favourite characters from Pak drama and it may seem oxymoron as they are diametrically so opposite. LOL

@FA – ah that’s interesting that you say that Saba had an ego and I do agree she had one. But would love to her your take on why you said that? Also as I said, I don’t see hEr as a mazloom aurat as such, because she chose her own path. till her family didn’t know about the truth, whatever she faced was not her doing. But as I have mentioned she herself didn’t find it any worse then what she had endured in the hands of her own family. After the truth was out in the open, all the choices were hers and as long as she was at peace with life in general I don’t see her as a mazloom aurat.

@SZ – Sorry for hijacking this thread, but couldn’t help indulging in dis discussion. BTW how come there’s no discussion threads of MZZB episodes? It is quite a thought provoking drama. 🙂

FA, Radiant, sorry I missed seeing your reply earlier, just saw it, thank you so much for replying 🙂

FA – I agree about Faisal Qureshi’s Mol vs QeT – it seems a bit unfair to me that men have such a long shelf-life as leads in our plays (case in point Adnan Siddiqui who is starring in two plays right now romancing much younger girls on Hum).
I’ll keep an open mind re: QeT, will let you know how it goes. Thanks for your inputs.

Radiant – Thanks for being my Pehchaan partner! I too like dissecting shows and I have missed the bus re: so many lovely dramas. Did you watch Durre Shahwar? I liked that too (especially the daughter Shandana’s story) and Malal, which is one of my big favourites. Shehr e Zaat is a very special one, something I like watching again and again – it is such a treat to watch every time.

OK, about Saba – I see your point, it’s just one of those things where I disagree with the writing. Yes, Saba may have found peace, and yes, that’s what we all want at the end of the day, but it only worked for her – withdrawing into a shell like that did not seem like a very practical sort of thing to do. Didn’t her daughter deserve to know what happened from her own mother? Shoulldn’t Saba have used her experience to enlighten her daughter that such things do/can happen in life? That’s what I meant by an active role model.

May be one day what Saba did might make sense to me, I am probably being too cynical just now and not seeing things from her perspective…

Re: Kashaf, I liked how her character started off, but towards mid-point, after they got married, there was no character growth and the whole play wasn’t impactful – I felt they were trying to include too many issues in the storyline and could do justice to none. Sorry, I probably sound about as thankless as Kashaf herself!

@VZ: Re DeS:If you look through Pehchan threads there was one ep where we had a loonngg DeS related discussion vis a vis Pehchan … would love to hear from you on that when you get there 🙂

Re: ZGH: LOL!! It is as if you were eavesdropping on my convo re: ZGH/Kashaf with a friend just yesterday and have copy pasted my comments here 🙂 For me ZGH started off well on paper but ultimately became a whole ghich pich of everything and nothing and then ultimately it all became meaningless, for me at least,

@Radiant: No worries, I am loving reading you guys on QeT and MZZB, and I find myself going yes, yes and no, no on various things that you and @FA and @VZ have to say (and Im sure ppl around me think Im suffering some disorder or the other 🙂 .

Re: Not having a thread on MZZB: a) the blog started with SeZ, so MZZB had come and gone by then… and given that I’m the only one here its as challenge to keep up with the new stuff alongside the older stuff .. now that we have a proper throwback thread, who knows … @VZ can tell you it took me forever to took me for the MeJ overview! My problem is that I commit myself to every piece I write and do my best to ensure that nothing I write is a recap or a summary just for the sake of checking off a box .. hence not being able to cover as many dramas as I would like to .. .but will def add MZZB to my list 😬

And on, throwback, my next post will be abt Jalpari … one my fave Sarmad + Sarmad serials, which kinda came and went without getting the applause and recognition that it rightly deserved.

And re: posting reviews (eg MeJ throwback), please – there’s never any hurry about posting anything – we all have day jobs and families and other stuff taking over our lives – at least this space should be deadlne-free as much as possible! My A-Z write-up of SeZ is hardly moving…sometimes it’s a mood thing as well – being in the right frame of mind for some plays…

Re: DeS, will look out for the discussion on the Pehchaan thread. Sanam B had this string of “D” plays that were all such big hits, na? Doraha, Daam, Daastaan, DeS…

Re: ZGH – arrey, really? I should probably visit the ZGH thread to read your reviews, but honestly, I found it such a let-down that I didn’t feel very keen to revisit the play (again, it’s one of those plays I watched long after it originally aired, so I ended up watching it all in one go). In addition to Kashaf, I was a bit sad about how Hina Bayat’s character came through in the play as well – nothing to do with her performance, I mean the writing – what were they trying to show through that character? It was completely confusing and in some instances made me quite angry too. For a play with many intelligent and strong women in front of and behind the camera, I expected more. But then, I didn’t know that Subh ka Sitara was round the corner 😦